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Donor Stories

After almost a lifetime of struggle with multiple mental illnesses, Ardith Powell's Life has about - faced. Her dreams have come to fruition, and her hope, faith, and service to others has been the source to her newly-found happiness. Her motto is, "I will give as the sun gives warm light, a glad outpouring of the best that is in me." Powell says there is hope and tells other people with mental illnesses not to give up.

Ardith's light continues to shine brightly for all she encounters. Ardith is a member of NAMI Southern Arizona. She has been trained and certified to present the NAMI program, In Our Own Voice. She is also speaking out about mental illness and stigma in her community. NAMI Southern Arizona has honored her as our Poet Laureate for 2014.

Here, Ardith Powell shares why she has joined the Legacy of Hope Society.

My entire life has been spent struggling with mental illnesses. At age twelve I became suicidal. i went around saying, "i wish I had never been born." In later years it changed to, "I wish I were dead." Because I know of the darkness and pain of living with mental illness it seems i am drawn with compassion and understanding to reach out to others with this affliction. To help in any way I can to assuage the suffering mental illness causes. i have been fortunate to have had the needed treatment and care that has kept me alive.

Now it is my turn to give back this privilege to ensure that others get adequate and proper treatment now and for future generations. My planned giving to NAMI Southern Arizona is a gift from my heart. This legacy of hope is vitally needed and it is imperative that it continues. It is with appreciation and gratitude to NAMI Southern Arizona for all the caring and support that has giving my life a new sense of worth and purpose. Help all of us with mental illness to rise to the challenge, embrace hope, and to never give it up. We are all in this together in bright or stormy weather. MY MANTRA IS HOPE. MY PEN HATH WRIT.

Norma Carlson, a long-time NAMI Southern Arizona member, former Board member and tireless volunteer has joined the Legacy of Hope Society. Here, Norma shares why she has made this commitment.

In 1991, my youngest son, Charlie, died by suicide at age 24. Our family was devastated, shocked and ignorant of reasons this happened to our beloved Charlie. He was the youngest in a family of 4 kids and a sweet personality whom everyone loved. When he was in high school, he changed and seemed more intense, anxious and definitely not interested in school. His father and I were going through a divorce and his siblings were away at college so we attributed his mood change to this situation. He was willing to go to counseling, but the results did not give us any new information other than at some point he became "mute". He got into a fight after a party where someone threatened his roommate. The other guy ended up in the hospital and Charlie told us he was deeply upset with himself. He was trying Pima College again after a few other attempts, but did not have the follow through. We sent him to a gastroenterologist because of his complaints of a chronically bad stomach. Shortly after, the doctor told him his tests had come back negative but he wanted to try one more thing. Charlie didn't wait. My involvement in NAMI Southern Arizona was partially to assuage my grief and to help start the Heart to Heart Program. It gave me a purpose and I felt that I was able to help others as well as myself and our family. I spoke in the community, facilitated a group of family members and ultimately was asked to join the Board. People at NAMI Southern Arizona helped me to see that Charlie died of an undiagnosed mental illness, most probably Bipolar II Disorder. My sister had been diagnosed with Bipolar I Disorder and had been hospitalized, but we knew little about the illness. She lived out of state and I slowly learned to be an advocate for her with her family. I now know that my family was riddled with depression, anxiety and mood disorders and that these conditions are genetic. I have done my best to educate my other children as I have 5 grandchildren. I am hoping that this will not happen again in our family.

I decided to join the Legacy of Hope Society as a lasting memorial to Charlie and his sister, Cari who died of breast cancer 4 years ago. My involvement with NAMI Southern Arizona has helped make my life purposeful and of value.

Ann and Andrew Lettes joined the NAMI Southern Arizona Legacy of Hope Society in December 2013. Ann is the current Treasurer of the Board of Directors. Here is how she describes her personal involvement with NAMI Southern Arizona and why she and her husband have made a commitment to the Legacy of Hope Society. I have been aware of NAMI Southern Arizona, in its various incarnations, since I began practicing Psychiatry in 1990. It was always a good resource for support for my patients. I did not become actively involved in NAMI until 2008, when I began participating in NAMI Walks and began attending a Friends and Family support group. The following May I joined the Board of Directors and I have had the privilege of helping NAMI Southern Arizona grow and mature. Now as the Treasurer on the Board of Directors, I can continue to promote that growth and contribute to maintaining the financial health of our agency so we can continue to offer our services free of charge to families, people with mental illnesses, and the community. By joining the Legacy of Hope Society I am now able to assist with the NAMI mission even after I am no longer around. For me and my husband it was only natural to want to remember NAMI Southern Arizona in our estate. I have a deep and multi-faceted interest in mental health and mental illness. I began working in a school for mentally ill and emotionally disturbed children when I was 16 years old and went on to eventually become a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist. I have practiced here in Tucson since August 1990 in a variety of settings including inpatient hospital, residential treatment, multi-specialty practice, a children’s public mental health network, and solo private practice. In 1995 I joined “the club no one wants to be a member of” when my then 8- year-old son had his first manic episode and psychiatric hospitalization. I became a consumer of mental health treatment and I became more aware of both the strengths and weaknesses in the available care. Like every other mother, I too wished for the magic wand that could take away my child’s illness. The support I got from my friends and family was crucial. I also learned from the experience of losing friends (even some in the mental health field) who did not want to be around my child, how stigma affects the whole family. In addition, were it not for stigma I might have known sooner that I had a grandmother who had been diagnosed with Manic Depressive Illness and that my son had a paternal great-aunt with mental illness. I know that no matter where my life path takes me that mental illness and mental health will be part of the picture and I hope that because of me the path may be less rocky for others.